…To say Fire Emblem Warriors was one of, if not the most anticipated Nintendo + Warriors Crossover game goes without saying. Of course, the only other is the smash hit Hyrule Warriors game. Fire Emblem Warriors holds the distinction of being the first non-port and non-remake game for the New Nintendo 3DS, which of course has backwards compatability with Nintendo 3DS and Nintendo DS games. It only took 2 years since the console’s release back in 2015!

Fire Emblem Warriors was also released on the Nintendo Switch but this review is for the version I own, the New Nintendo 3DS version. Aside from graphics, sound quality and controls, both versions are prettymuch identical just like Hyrule Warriors and Super Smash Bros. 3DS/Wii U. Henceforth I will refew to Fire Emblem Warriors as FE:W for the rest of this post.

FE:W boasts of roster of 33 characters including the 9 DLC-only characters, 6 of which have been released so far. The cast comes from four of the most recent Fire Emblem titles:

Fire Emblem Awakening (Nintendo 3DS): Chrom, Lissa, Frederick, Male Robin (Female Robin is unlockable in History Mode but is non-canon), Lucina (Masked and Unmasked variants available) and Cordelia. Owain, who appears as an NPC Ally in Story Mode is playable via DLC along with Tharja and Olivia. Validar, the Dark Priest of the Grimleal appears as a boss as well.

Fire Emblem Fates (Nintendo 3DS): Female Corrin (Male Corrin is Unlockable in History Mode but is non-canon), Ryoma, Hinoka, Takumi, Sakura, Xander, Camilla, Leo and Elise. Oboro and Niles, who appear as NPC Foes in Story Mode are playable DLC along with Azura (Her Costume from Conquest is available). Iago, Nohr’s chief strategist appears as a boss as well.

Fire Emblem Shadow Dragon (Nintendo DS): Marth, Caeda and Tiki. Navarre, who appears as an Ally NPC in Story Mode is playable via DLC along with Linde and Minerva. Gharnef, the Evil Sorcerer who plunged Archanea in war appears as a boss as well.

Fire Emblem Echoes Shadows of Valentia (Nintendo 3DS): Celica is unlockable after completing the History Mode map Together to the End.

Fire Emblem (Fire Emblem: The Blazing Sword in Japan; Game Boy Advance): Lyn is unlockable after completing the History Mode map Noble Lady of Caelin.

Anna, who has been a playable character in every Fire Emblem game since Awakening is an unlockable character but takes some time and effort: You will need to first complete an illustration and then completing a certain mission afterward. It takes time as well. This Anna, like the one in Fates is a Bow user just so you know. The other two playable characters are the Lords of FE:W, Rowan and Lianna. They both play the same way and use the same weapon type (Sword). Everyone else is unlocked by playing through Story Mode.

As noted above, Male Robin and Female Corrin are Canon for the purposes of this game’s Story Mode. For those who never played Awakening or Fates, Robin/Corrin’s gender can be freely chosen by the player at the start of the game. The dialogue is slightly different depending on Robin/Corrin’s gender but in the games’ video cutscenes the gender isn’t directly referenced to keep it ambiguous. Even after you unlock Female Robin and Male Corrin and switch to them in Story Mode, it has been only coded for Female Corrin/Male Robin for the story content.

Those who played Fire Emblem Fates: Birthright and/or Fire Emblem Fates: Conquest knows the conflict between the Kingdoms of Nohr and Hoshido is the main story of both games with Corrin forced to chose one or the other. In the DLC-Only third campaign Revelations in which Corrin sides with neither Nohr or Hoshido, the royals of both games join forces. So, Xander and Ryoma joining forces in FE:W is technically canon.

I’ll give Intelligent Systems and Koei Techmo credit: They did a masterful job blending the mechanics from both Fire Emblem and the Dynasty Warriors and Samurai Warriors franchises. Yes, there is even Perma-Death (optional as of Awakening). Those who played the older Fire Emblem games know this but when a non-Lord character falls in battle, you lose them for good. When a Lord falls, it’s instant game over. As of Awakening, you can turn this mechanic off but I won’t digress further. My point is to the ire of most Fire Emblem vets, the franchise opened the series up to people new to the series. FE:W is no different despite the fact it is, to put it simply a Fire Emblem-themed Warriors game.

The game is split into Story Mode and History Mode. In Story Mode, Aytolis’ Twin Royals Rowan and Lianna recruit Heroes from other worlds to help them save their kingdom and slay the Chaos Dragon. This is the second Fire Emblem title after Sacred Stones to feature twin protagonists and the third including Shadows of Valentia to feature two main Protagonists. The difference is there are no branching storylines like there are in the other two Fire Emblem games I just referenced. There actually is a split during the portion involving the Fates Cast spanning 6 chapters (3 for each side) but everyone gets together again after that. Darios, the Prince of the Gristonne assists the twins until a certain point in the storyline. I won’t say more than that for plot reasons but yes, he does become an enemy.

Clearing Story Mode at least once is required to unlock Lunatic Mode and that’s when things get real. You actually do need to complete Story Story Mode on every difficulty if you want to complete the Illustrations. This is in addition to clearing History Mode Scenarios.

Even though they are not a part of story Mode Lyn, Celica, Anna and the DLC Characters (and the Female Robin/Male Corrin) do have Supports with the canon cast as well as each other. Every character has abilities that require you to get a Max Support with a specific character. Clearing some of the more challenging History Mode Maps does require you to level characters to 90+. Not just 1 to 4 but almost all of them in some cases: Some of the History Mode matches do have special restrictions such as Mounted Only or Bows Only. What this means is if you haven’t been leveling certain characters, your best bet is to grind some Story Mode Maps on Lunatic for Gold, then use that to Power Level underleveled characters.

Overall, I give Fire Emblem Warriors an 8/10.

It’s a solid, solid game and you can’t help but give props for striking a hard balance: it’s game those familiar with both Fire Emblem and the Warriors games will enjoy but doesn’t assume one is familiar with one or both games. I took two points off for two reasons: The first and biggest is physical copies of the game New Nintendo 3DS version may randomly glitch and crash while browsing menu screens. The problem does not exist in digital copies of the game, only physical copies. Nintendo has released patches with every DLC release to address this in problem as well as upgrade the game. The game doesn’t glitch and crash during battles but clearly a longterm fix is in order.

The other reason I took two points off is because of the fact all of the known DLC content was announced in advance and no new DLC content has been announced since. Anyone who’s been reading this blog for years should know I have a very favorable opinion of DLC when it makes sense. In the case of FE:W, more would make sense. A Shadows of Valenia Pack featuring Alm, Mycen and Nomah would be cool. So would a Path of Radiance Pack featuring Ike, Soren and Mist as well as a Radiant Dawn Pack featuring Micaiah, Sothe and The Black Knight. A Fire Emblem GBA Pack featuring Eliwood, Hector and Guy would also work. So would a Sacred Stones Pack featuring Erika, Ephraim and Lyon or Seth. They could all work.

That aside, I am holding out hope we may see a Fire Emblem Warriors II. Would be cool and as I just hinted, there are ALOT of characters and games who could be drawn from to fill out the cast. Spanning all the current Fire Emblem games…we’re talking over 600 characters. So, yeah. If it happens, we’re talking a who’s who playable characters!

…You gotta give credit to The Pokemon Company: They shared enough info to market the game but not too much before its release. As it turned out, Ultra Sun/Moon followed the Yellow/Crystal/Emerald/Platinum model in which it’s an enhanced of the base pair.

There is a twist, however: Ultra Sun/Moon are the first games in which a new Pokemon is introduced that wasn’t in the base games: Poipole and its evolution form Naganadel as well as the Ultra Beasts Stakata (Ultra Moon Only) and Blacephalon (Ultra Sun Only).

The storyline involving Lusamine and the Aether Insitute is different as well. In Sun/Moon, she was the main antagonist. In Ultra Sun/Moon it’s Necrozma, The Ultra Beasts and in the postgame Team Rainbow Rocket. More on them in a bit. Of course there’s also Team Skull but it’s a bit more obvious this time that they’re not really bad.

Mina, the Trial Captain of Poni Poni Island makes a brief cameo appearance in Sun/Moon and give you Fairinium Z. In Ultra/Sun Moon, she has a larger role and her own trial as well. Araquanid replaces Whishiwashi in the Water Trial and WILL curb-stomp your whole team unless you bring in an overleveled Pokemon to deal with it. Togedemaru replaces Vikavolt and despite the 4x Weakness to Ground will take some effort to take down quickly.

Like I said in my review of Sun/Moon, I hate Totem Battles and the SOS Mechanic as a whole. I hate the fact that Heart Scales are tied to it along with several Wild Pokemon obviously. For those who don’t know, Heart Scales drop from Luvdisc and is needed to use the Move Relearner since its introduction in the 3rd Gen. The thing is, wild Pokemon don’t always have a hold item with them. AlphaSapphire/OmegaRuby at least had a means of forcing encounters with wild Pokemon with a hold item. Since Luvdisc will only appear as an SOS Pokemon, that needlessly makes Heart Scales rare in the 7th Gen.

Rant over, moving on.

The games’ real big bad is of course, Team Rainbow Rocket. The 7th Gen’s introduction of other dimensions and multiple universes–and you can be sure this will be expanded upon–opens the door to bigger, longer and more games in the future. While it is true that there have been specific Pokemon whose lore involves other dimensions–most notably the Giratina and Palkia–Ultra Sun/Moon is the first game to take things to the next logical step and make a storyline focusing on it.

The Team Bosses from the previous gens all appear in the postgame Team Rainbow Rocket event. The tone is the same as OmegaRuby/AlphaSapphire’s Delta Episode. The cool thing about these bosses’ backstories: Each Team Boss comes from a “What if they succeeded?” world. Or more specifically, if the main protagonist wasn’t there to stop them. Colress from Black/White and Black 2/White 2, who makes a cameo appearance in Sun/Moon plays a significant role in the TRR Event. Each Team Boss has the cover legendary from their games. Cyrus has Dialga in Ultra Sun but Palkia in Ultra Moon. Lysandre has Xerneas in Ultra Sun but Yveltal in Ultra Moon. Ghestis has Zekrom in Ultra Sun but Reshiram in Ultra Moon. Finally, Giovanni’s Mewtwo will Mega Evolve into Mega Mewtwo X in Ultra Sun but Mega Mewtwo Y in Ultra Moon. This is the toughest string of battles yet and I strongly reccommend importing Level 100 Pokemon from Poke Bank or Sun/Moon if you can.

Speaking of legendaries.

Like OmegaRuby/AlphaSapphire, you can catch ALL of them in Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon. The second and third pictures contain the version-exclusive ones. To get the third Pokemon, you will need to trade the Pokemon not in your game to yours and put both of them on your team (For example you need both Kyogre and Groudon to get Rayquayza).

This excludes Event-Only Pokemon now referred to as Mythical Pokemon. I’m talking about Mew (can be caught in the 1st Gen Red/Blue using a glitch during a certain point in the game), Celebi (You get a code for it if you buy Gold, Silver or Crystal from the eShop), Jirachi, Deoxys (can be caught in OmegaRuby/AlphaSapphire), Phione (must beed a Manaphy with Ditto for one), Manaphy, Darkrai, Shaymin (has an alternate form), Arceus, Keldeo (has an alternate form), Meloetta (has an alternate form), Genesect, Diancie (was given away via promo codes), Hoopa (was given away via promo codes, has an alternate form), Volcanion (never officially given away in the U.S.), Megearna (never officially given away in the U.S.), Marshadow and Zeraora (yet to be officially introduced worldwide).

Most of the Mythical Pokemon have had a limited releases, most notably during the the 20th Anniversary Pokemon giveaway in 2016. Each month, a legendary Pokemon or Mythical Pokemon was released via Mystery Gift.

As of the 6th Gen, the cover Legendary Pokemon are no longer the end-all powerhouses in battle they once were. I get they were nerfed to be fair to non-legends but prettymuch turning them into glass cannons? I shouldn’t have to worry about Groudon, Yveltal or Solgaleo being handled by a single Pokemon one on one. It should take the efforts of at least two Pokemon to take down ANY legendary Pokemon in my book. Mega Rayquayza will meet its match against Necrozma’s Ultra Form, Dusk Mane Solgaleo or Dawn Wing Lunala. For those who don’t know, Mega Rayquayza is considered the single most powerful Pokemon of the 6th Gen because of all the things it has going for it.

The nerf to Sandstorm, Snow Warning, Drizzle and Drought in the 5th Gen I get. For those who don’t know, Pokemon with one of those abilities would summon Sand/Storm, Rain or Sunlight for the rest of the battle. The moves were nerfed to only last for 5 turns with the exception of Primal Groudon/Kyogre (Sunlight/Rain lasts while said Pokemon is in the battle). Nerfing the weather mechanics was prettymuch necessary because of how integral the weather was for many in tournament strategies.

For a limited time, you could get a special Rockruff via Mystery Gift. This Rockruff has the Own Tempo ability (blocks Confusion) and comes with Happy Hour, a move exclusive to Ultra Sun/Move that works the same as the Amulet Coin (increases payout from Trainer Battles). It can also only evolved into a special Dusk Lycanroc 5:00PM and 5:59PM. For the other two Lycanroc forms, you will need to import them from Sun or Moon. The promotion ended on January 10, 2018 so the only way to get this special Rockruff is to ask someone who got one to breed one for you.

…Overall, I give Pokemon Ultra Sun/Moon at 7/10.

Z-Moves being usable once per battle makes using them very situational just like Mega Evolution. Speaking of, I was angered and furious how 95% of the known Mega Stones were locked behind the postgame Battle Tree no one dones. I refuse to participate in such a luck-based mechanic where the competition can 2 or 3-hit KO whatever you send out. Not just in Ultra Sun/Moon but Sun/Moon, too. I just wished they didn’t prettymuch add Mega Evolution as an afterthought in the 7th Gen. It felt like “Oh wait we forgot about Mega Evolution, which such a big part of the 6th Gen games!” It’s a travesty and felt like they were basically saying they regretted introducing Mega Evolution. That’s just one point.

The increased difficulty of the games is why I took two points off. It’s very…hostile to those new the Pokemon games or anyone who hasn’t played past the 2nd Gen to now. Even to Vets, you’ll be impatiently waiting for the chance to use the Pokemon you imported from Poke Bank but can’t since it’ll be a while before you have access to a Pokemon Center for the first time.

It has been announced that Pokemon UltraSun and Pokemon UltraMoon will be the last main series Pokemon games getting released on the Nintendo 3DS. It’s still believed the remakes to Pokemon Diamond and Pearl will be released on the 3DS though. As for the 8th Gen, many think it will be released on the Nintendo Switch. I think it’s more likely they will be New Nintendo 3DS exclusive like Fire Emblem Warriors though. The 7th Gen games had increased functionality when used with a New Nintendo 3DS ala Super Smash Bros. 3DS.

Speaking of Fire Emblem Warriors…yep, that review is coming up next ^_^

…Let’s be transparent: There are those who proritize their gaming habits to unhealthy levels, no pun intended. We’ve always known this. The fact that the World Health Organization (WHO) has officially issued guidelines for Gaming Addiction speaks to how serious the problem has become worldwide in recent years. While the linked article admits it only effects a small number of people and is limited to only certain areas of the world, the data and headlines exist to back up the need for this.

Swatting, which is exclusively associated with online gaming is the act of someone calling law enforcement on someone not in their area. The caller gives dispatch a fictional story in which the victim is or is about to put the lives of others in the house in imminent danger to get police to go to their home in force, weapons drawn. Last month, a young man who was the victim was Swatting was killed by law enforcement. For those who are wondering there was no way for Law Enforcement to know in advance the man who they killed was a Swatting victim. That’s a chance they just can’t take regardless so…yeah. Not excusing what went down, mind you.

That aside, there are PLENTY of stories worldwide in which one’s gaming habits have lead to the death of the gamer. That’s what these new guidelines are about. Gaming addiction is NO JOKE. The gaming community prefers to ignore the obvious warning signs or brush off those who make the news as “extreme examples”. The Gaming Industry does advise taking breaks and limiting playing time per day but of course, most gamers prefer to ignore the warnings.

On that note, I want to remind folks of something I’ve said more than a few times: The Gaming Industry cares about profits first and everything else second. They’re not different from anyone else in that regard and it is EXTREMELY important that folks keep this in mind. We were lucky retired Senator Joseph Lieberman didn’t get his way 20 years ago when he called for strict regulations on video games. He has been an outspoken critic of video games, pointing to what we brushed off as “isolated incidents” as reasons for it. The media is not on our side either given with every story involving a video gamr, they always use stock footage of gamers playing violent video games. This is being done on purpose of course. Timing sucks given gaming is now mainstream but…yeah.

I know how I’m starting to sound to my fellow gamers so I’ll end with this: We can no longer be silent about this. We need to stand up and voice ourselves. Gaming Addiction IS real even if it only effects a small amount of people. Like other kinds of addiction, the first step is acknowledging there is a problem. When your gaming habits consistently or drastically impacts your quality of life, some changes need to be made. Yes, I know how I’m sounding.

I posted this on THIS blog to make a statement.

One other thing.

I was planning to make this a separate post but I have decided to step up and say this here instead. Over the last 3 months, I have sold 5 of my game systems: My Xbox 360, PS3, Wii and both of my PS Vitas. I sold all the games for all of those consoles as well. That leaves me with my PS4, Wii U and both of my New 3DS consoles. I sold a third of my physical 3DS games for the same reason as well. I do plan repurchase a PS3 and 2 Vitas once I am financially stable again though. Same with about half of the 3DS games I sold. Oh and yes, I kept both of the 64GB Vita Memory Cards I bought via Amazon.

My reasons for selling most of the video games I had were for money and a large change in priorities. This is also why I hadn’t posted any game reviews in several months. That and I have been focusing on actually getting through my (MASSIVE) backlog of video games. The last 2 games I bought…were Pokemon UltraSun and Fire Emblem Warriors, both in December. That will have to be it until I have income. That and the change in my priorities like I said before.

….Looking past how EPIC the Opening Cinematic is, this is clearly a “filler” expansion just like Warlords of Draenor and Cataclysm were for Mists of Pandaria and Legion respectively. We will see “Part 2” in the expansion after this one. They also made it a bit more obvious this time around: “Whoever wins will inherit a ruined world.”

Of course, it’s unlikely neither faction will be wiped out completely. More like one will control most of Azeroth politically and militarily. This also isn’t the first time there has been all out war between the Alliance and the Horde. That was basically Garrosh Hellscream’s tenure as Warchief of the Horde spanning Cataclysm and Mists. Despite sacking Orgrimmar, The Alliance spared the Horde’s leadership aside from Garrosh Hellscream. He was taken into custody by the Shado Pan and tried for War Crimes, effectively ending the conflict between both factions for the time being.

After heroes of Azeroth stopped the Iron Horde on Draenor and neutralized the Legion, war between both factions was reignited: The Horde burns Teldrassil to the ground and takes control of Kalimdor. In retaliation, The Alliance takes The Undercity and with it, total control of the Eastern Kingdoms. Unlike Cataclysm and Mists of Pandaria in which the Faction Conflict drove the story, in BfA the Faction Conflict IS the story.

Easily bigger than the new expansion announcement was Blizzard’s announcement of the release of WoW Classic aka Vanilla WoW. As of right now, we know nothing other than it’s coming. It has been the most requested thing by many vets of the game since The Burning Crusade went live: Dedicated servers locked to WoW’s pre-expansion state. I myself started playing WoW halfway through Burning Crusade but even then, folks liked to talk about “how much better” WoW Classic was than the current live version. As the game evolved, those voices grew and grew. Let’s not also forget there were the private illegal servers that ran WoW Classic, too so…yeah.

Me personally, this is a situation where the “Old School WoW Players” and those who started playing WoW from Burning Crusade onward both get what they want. All that is currently known about WoW Classic is it will happen, it will be “as close to Pre-expansion as possible” and it will have full Battle.net integration like StarCraft Remastered (HD Remake of the first StarCraft game and its expansion Brood Wars) does. Nothing more is known about it beyond that.

For those who never played the WoW during it’s early years, here’s what you should know:

Paladin is Alliance Only (Human and Dwarf) and Shaman is Horde Only (Orc, Troll and Tauren): The Draenei introduced the Shaman class to the Alliance in Burning Crusade but in Cataclysm, Dwarves gain the Shaman class via the Wildhammer Clan and the Alliance-aligned Tushi Pandaren has the Shaman class as well. The Blood Elves introduced the Paladin class to the Horde in Burning Crusade but in Cataclysm, the Tauren gain the Paladin class via The Sunwalkers. The Horde gain two more races with the Shaman class via the Goblin and Huojun Pandaren.

Druid class is one race per faction: Night Elf for Alliance and Tauren for Horde. Cataclysm brought an additional race for the class to both factions via the Worgen and Trolls.

No Death Knight, Monk or Demon Huner Class: These were introduced later on via Wrath of the Lich King (Death Knight), Mists of Pandaria (Monk) and Legion (Demon Hunter).

No Dungeon/Raid Finder: If you want to do a dungeon or raid, you will have to physically travel to the instance. LFD was introduced in Wrath while LFR was introduced at the end of Cataclysm. Both are pointed as one of the two reasons (along with Paid Faction Change) as what killed Server Community.

No Paid Faction Change: This was introduced in Wrath and is pointed to as one of the two reasons (along with LFR/LFD) as what killed Server Community.

No Accountwide Achievements: This was introduced in Wrath. Popularized by Microsoft’s Xbox Consoles, WoW’s Version tracked every milestone you achieve. It was upgraded in Cataclysm to allow certain achievements to now be shared across all current and future characters on a single account.

No Heirlooms: Heirlooms were introduced in Wrath as a means of speeding through the leveling experience. At the time they were introduced they took a long time to get. When the Heirloom Tab was introduced in Mists, that created a unified system shared across all current and future characters.

Race Mounts locked to Race: Until halfway through Cataclysm, you couldn’t have Gnomes rocking Nightsabers or Tauren rocking Wolves as mounts. One can now use other mounts of their faction that were previously exclusive to just the race they played as.

Shared Starting Areas: Dwarves and Gnomes share the same Level 1-5 starting area while Orcs and Trolls share the same Level 1-5 starting area. Gnomes and Trolls got their own starting areas in Cataclysm via Gnomeregan and the Echo Isles.

Level 60 is the level cap: Goes without saying. The raids were Molten Core, Zul’Gurub, Blackwing Lair, Onyxia’s Lair, Ruins of AQ, AQ40 and the original Naxxramas. Naxx, Ruins of AQ, AQ40, MC and BWL all had an attunement requirements attached at the time as well.

…There’s more than that but that’s most of the big stuff.

And for those who are scratching their heads yes, there are literally thousands–probably no more than 30,000 worldwide–who want to play that version of WoW. It’s not known if it will be free, have a separate subscription or be included as part of an existing WoW Subscription. I’ll post more info as it comes.

…I plan on doing this with the original Red and Blue and their Game Boy Advance remakes FireRed and LeafGreen, likely in February or April. I already did it for Ruby and Sapphire and their remakes OmegaRuby and AlphaSapphire two years ago so…yeah.

Now that the original Gold and Silver have (Finally) been re-released (on the Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console), I have decided to do this little compare and contrast for folks regardless of which you prefer. Personally, I like both versions. LOL.

Let’s get started:

At the time of their original 2000 release, The Power of One–also known as Pokemon The Movie 2000 in the U.S.–fans were already familiar with Lugia, who was the main Legendary in the movie. As a result, Silver was more popular even though you could catch both Lugia and Ho-Oh in both games and in the same locations. The cover legendary could be caught at level 40 with their signature move while the other could be caught at level 70 without it. This is not possible in the Virtual Console versions–not yet anyway–but if you had Pokemon Crystal, you could pay the Move Relearner in Blackthorn City a visit to get Aeroblast or Sacred Fire on the level 70 versions of Lugia and Ho-Oh.

The remakes included the Pokefinder Prehep, which was essentially an enhanced replacement for the Mystery Gift feature in the originals. It also doubled as an additional way to both level pokemon you weren’t currently using and even randomly get new items or pokemon which could then be transferred back to the game.

Speaking of Mystery Gift. The feature works fully in the the Virtual Console versions: All the 2DS, 3DS and New 3DS Family consoles have an infrared bar so…yeah. As a reminder, you can only Mystery Gift the same person once a day.

In terms of difficulty, the originals were a little easier than Red/Blue/Yellow in some ways but harder in others. The Johto Starters don’t present a particular advantage against the Gyms out the gate due to a variety of factors. Chikorita is almost useless until you get to Kanto. Cyndaquil is good for Buggsy obviously but will be curb-stomped by Jasmine’s level 35 Steelix despite the type advantage (Her Steelix has Rock Slide for coverage). Totodile evolves fast (18 and 30) but offers no clear advantage against any of the Gyms or even the Elite Four. To offset this, the levels of the Gyms and the Elite Four are lower than their first-Gen counterparts.

In terms of difficulty, the remakes were definitely easier than Diamond/Pearl/Platinum in some ways but harder in others. The remakes included Pokemon Abilities and Natures introduced in the 3rd Gen as well as the reclassing of moves into Physical, Special/Energy and Other/Non-Damage in the 4th Gen. This added an extra layer of strategy to both be mindful of and exploit in the remakes.

I’ll pause the list for a bit and explain further:

Those who played Pokemon from the 3rd Gen on knows Gastly and its evolutions know the ability Levitate, which neutralizes their weakness to Ground-Type moves. Since Abilities don’t exist in the 2nd Gen, you could import a Level 30 Dugtrio (highest level you can use from trades with your badges at that point) with Earthquake and sweep Morty, the Ghost Gym Leader without taking any damage.

Let’s look at another Pokemon: Magnemite and its evolutions. Magnemite sometimes has an ability called Magnet Pull, which prevents Steel-type Pokemon from being switched out. This can make catching a wild Magnemite tricky if your lead Pokemon happens to be a Steel type but it can cause you problems since both of Jasmine’s Magnemites know Magnet Pull in the remakes.

I mentioned the reclassing of moves: Before the 4th Gen, Rock Slide was a Special Attack. Starting in the 4th Gen it’s considered a Physical move. To take it a step further, look at the Elemental Ice/Fire/Thunder Punch, which certain Pokemon naturally learn and are TMs in the originals: They are all physical movies starting in the 4th Gen since the user makes physical contact with their opponent. Why do you need to know this? Certain Pokemon Abilities are triggered by physical contact from the opponent. For example Static, which Pikachu and Mareep (and their evolutions) have: There is a 30% chance Paralysis will be inflicted on the opponent who makes physical contact with them.

Again, it’s an extra layer of strategy that needs to be taken into account in the remakes that you don’t in the originals.

In the originals, there are 26 variations of Unown (A to Z). In the remakes, two more were added in the 3rd Gen for the “!” and “?” characters for a new total of 28 variations of Unown.

In the originals, you could not trade with the 1st Gen games until the day after you meet Bill in Ecruteak City. In the remakes, you can trade with Diamond/Pearl/Platinum as soon as you name your rival.

The Safari Zone in Fuschia City from the 1st Gen is closed in the originals. In the remakes, it has been moved to a new area west of Cianwood City. In addition, the Pal Park–the mechanic used to migrate Pokemon from the 3rd gen games to the 4th–is where the Safari Zone was in Fuschia City in the remakes.

In the originals, hatching Pokemon took a while. In the remakes, you could speed up the process by putting a Pokemon with the Magma Armor ability in your party.

Breaking news: Pokemon Crystal has been confirmed to be coming to the 3DS eShop’s Virtual Console on January 26, 2018. Pokemon Crystal was set apart from Gold and Silver for 3 reasons. One was it was Game Boy Color exclusive. The second is the Pokemon Sprites are animated, which was likely why it was GBC exclusive. Third, you had a guaranteed shot at the legendary Pokemon Suicune without having to find it first.

It has also be revealed that unlike the originaal U.S. release, you will be able to catch Celebi in the U.S. Virtual Console version of Pokemon Crystal. This wasn’t possible back in 2001 as the Japanese version had an exclusive prehep that allowed one to connect their cellphone to their Game Boy Color. The Japanese version of Pokemon Crystal contained additional features that made use of the mobile phone adapter including the ability to trade online in Japan. Said features were obviously excluded from the U.S. version since Nintendo scrapped bringing the mobile adapter to the U.S. at the last minute. If you used a Game Shark on Crystal you already know the coding for Celebi was obviously still in the game.

If I had to guess, Nintendo will modify the coding to make Celebi an in-game event Pokemon once certain conditions have been satisfied. One of the conditions in the Japanese version was to collect all 16 badges. The other three involved the features excluded from the U.S. version. My guess is beating Red or completing the Pokedex will be added in the U.S. version as requirements to catch Celebi. The Time Travel Pokemon will be level 30 so prepare accordingly!

Speaking of Pokemon Crystal. Those who played it as well as HeartGold and SoulSilver will have noticed the Eusine storyline involving Suicune was brought back. What this means is in Crystal as well as in HS/SS is you have a guaranteed shot at catching Suicune. You will still need to do the legwork for Entei and Raikou though.

I can confirm as of September 17, the Nintendo 3DS App PokeTransporter has an update available to allow Pokemon to be transferred from the 2nd Gen to 7th Gen. There are no update notes but given the update is 421 blocks, it’s obvious that’s what the update is for.

…For those who may be wondering, Nintendo has confirmed you will be able to use the Time Capsule in Gold and Silver to transfer Pokemon to or from Red, Blue and Yellow which were released earlier this year. Just be mindful you can’t transfer anything from the 2nd gen that didn’t exist in the first. So no 2nd Gen Pokemon, moves on 1st gen Pokemon they don’t learn in the 1st gen and no Eggs. They can’t even be in the party just so you know.

Those who buy Gold and/or SIlver will receive a code to get a Celebi in the 7th Gen games. The redemption code is on the digital receipt, which can be viewed bt foing to the eShop and pulling up your transaction history. Write the code down or take a picture since you will need to go into the Mystery Gift option in the 7th Gen games–Sun, Moon, UltraSun and UltraMoon–to redeem the code and get Celebi. Celebi is the 2nd Gen’s Mew in that it’s an Event Pokemon otherwise unobtainable in-game. Celebi was officially released in the U.S. when the Poke Bank App launched after being delayed to fully test it.

Originally announced as being Japan-Only, you can get these Gold and Silver 3DS Themes when you buy the games. The code is on the receipt below the Celebi one. Speaking of, the codes for both the themes and Celebi are only good for 1 year. That’s all the more reason to redeem them ASAP.

…I actually preordered both games. I expect alot of folks to try to download the game on Day One so…yeah. How digital pre-orders work is the full game is downloaded but is locked until its official release date. A small update unlocks the game if it’s not set to automatically unlock on its own on the official release day. For those who either need a refresher or never played the original Gold and Silver, check out this page I made on the 2nd Gen games!

…This happens far less today than it did 30 years ago but often, a game maker would make two or more prototypes of an upcoming game and then pick the one they like the most to focus on. Depending on the promise, sometimes the prototypes they passed on will see a release at a later time. This was the one time Nintendo literally made two different sequels to Super Mario Bros. and BOTH were mega successful.

Those of you in North America who played the NES have likely played this version of Super Mario. Bros. 2. In exchange for being a single-player game you could play as Mario, Luigi, Peach or Toad and each of them played differently: Mario was balanced, Luigi could Super Jump (which would return in later games), Peach could glide (reused in later games) and Toad could chuck objects faster than the others. Unlike the prequel and the Sequel (Super Mario Bros. and Super Mario Bros. 3), Bowser was not the final boss: It was a giant frog named Wart.

Not only that, the game had a distinct Arabian motiff: Flying Carpets, Lamps and so on. Compared to the game that came before it and the game that would come after it, Super Mario Bros. 2 felt like another game.

Well, it was originally:

The game was Doki Doki Panic, a Famicom (Japan’s NES) platformer. The story goes, then Nintendo of America president Howard Lincoln sampled the Super Mario Bros. 2 that had been released in Japan. That version of Super Mario Bros. 2 was basically the first game with increased difficulty and new mechanics in the form of wind and the Poison Mushroom. Lincoln felt it would be too hard and frustrating for American gamers so Nintendo of America looked at the Famicom library for an existing game to reskin as Super Mario Bros. 2.

The game they settled on: Doki Doki Panic, which had never been released outside Japan.

…The similarities are impossible to ignore. LOL.

They basically took the game and Mario-ized it for its North American release. Take a look at the picures: In Doki Doki Panic, you were trying to rescue someone. In Super Mario Bros. 2 the 5th person is removed but the pose remains! Gamers in the U.S. would have no idea the Super Mario Bros. 2. they came to know and love was actually a reskinned port of a game that had already been released in Japan until a Nintendo Power publication dropped the news 8 years later. It’s worth noting Shy Guy and Birdie are both credited as having come from Doki Doki Panic in later game appearances.

What did Japanese Gamers think of the U.S. getting a different version of Super Mario Bros. 2.? They wanted in on that action:

…So they got it in 1992–two years after Super Mario Bros. 3 had been released: Nintendo took the North American version of Super Mario 2 and localized it for Japan’s NES the Famicom as Super Mario USA. It’s funny when you think about it given at that time, the Super Famicom and SNES had just been released in Japan and the U.S. It’s also funny given the game Nintendo of America used as a blueprint–Doki Doki Panic–had already been released in Japan several years earlier!

I believe this was the first and only time we have seen anything like this in gaming history. Here’s a chart to help clarify the timeline:

…The obvious remaining question to ask is would North American gamers ever get to play the Japanese release of Super Mario Bros. 2? After all, Japan got the U.S. Version. The answer to anyone who played Super Mario All Stars for the SNES is yes:

I played the game, known in the U.S. as Super Mario Bros. The Lost Levels (aptly named, mind you) in 1994. This was during the holidays and the same year I had open heart surgery. I remember it well. I referenced this before in past blog posts but THIS–Super Mario All Stars–was the very first game I ever pulled an all-nighter to play. I was 10 years old. Ironically, I played Super Mario Bros. 2 first. This was the first and only time I actually beat Super Mario Bros. 2 believe it or not: I have not to this day ever beaten the NES version of Super Mario Bros. 2 (U.S.) despite owning every single port of the game (Game Boy Advance and Virtual Console).

Anyway when I got to the Lost Levels, it felt like the first Super Mario Bros. but I could tell it was a completely different game. The wind and poison mushrooms–the latter easier to tell apart from Super Mushrooms than the Famicom version–were the giveaways. They certainly didn’t exist in the first game! Anyways, I beat it in the same night. Then I went and cruised through the other two games. By the time I finished, my older brother and cousin were just waking up the next morning. I felt like a BOSS.

…Watching the above video brought back some painful memories. I can’t fault Nintendo of America for not wanting to release it in 1986!

Aside from the graphical upgrade, nothing was changed in terms of gameplay. If you feel like from just watching the video the game was designed to make it as hard as possible to beat, that’s exactly what it felt like playing it: in World 3-1, there is a warp pipe that sends you back to World 1-1 and in World 8-1, there is a warp pipe that sends you back to 5-1! Even today it is an extremely tricky game to clear. Just look at the last two minutes!

…Super Mario All Stars would be re-released 20 years later on the Wii, allowing a whole new generation of gamers to play both the U.S. and Japanese versions of Super Mario Bros. 2 along with 1 and 3. It’s worth trying at the very least but fair warning, the ragequit factor is VERY high! In fact, most who beat the game would seldom be willing to do it again. It’s THAT difficult. If you think today’s games are “too easy”, this game might be right up your alley!

…After being “accidently” leaked by Bethesda when the Switch was 0fficially unveiled last year, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim has been confirmed to be making its way to the Nintendo Switch. You read that right: The 2011 Game of the year which won almost 100 Awards is coming to a Nintendo console! As you can see from the box art, all 3 expansions are included.

Skyrim was originally released on the Xbox 360, PS3 and PC but was later released on the PS4 and Xbox One when they were released. It is still mega popular 6 years after its initial release. It’s an RPG for those who would not play a traditional RPG series like Final Fantasy to put it simply. The game has 3 Expansions: Dawnguard (new areas and quests), Hearthfire (able to buy and furnish houses) and Dragonborn (New abilities and quests), all of which were also released for the console versions. Later releases automatically include the three expansions with the game (no downloading required).

…I myself have the PC, PS3 and PS4 Legendary Edition versions of Skyrim, which includes all 3 expansions. I haven’t finished the main story yet–yes, there is one–in any version. Mostly because I got a whole bunch of games since I bought Skyrim for the PS3 three years ago. I just remembered I should probably finish the PS3 and PS4 versions at least (LOL!). I got the PC version from Steam on sale to try a mod two years back but it’s not currently installed on my computers.

…This is one of the reasons to get the Nintendo Switch version if you have the console: It will have Amiibo Support. You can scan Amiibos to get additional gear. As of right now, we know you can scan Legend of Zelda Amiibos to get Link’s Tunic, The Master Sword and the Hylian Shield. It’s not a stretch to believe Fire Emblem Amiibos will be compatible or it will be added =O

As you can clearly see from these pictures, the Nintendo Switch Version will be a significant graphical downgrade from even the PC version on the lowest settings. I do suspect this is how Skyrim would look on the Vita as well actually. It’s a question of weather you’d be willing to deal with the obvious graphical downgrade in exchange for slightly improved gameplay and portability.

…I already have two HD versions of the game (PS3 and PS4). My answer is obvious: I’ll pass. If you never played Skyrim but have a Switch though, go for it. If you never played Skyrim but have one of the other platforms, it’s a must-have.

…We knew this was coming: A game dedicated exclusively to the Sanada Clan. For the first time in franchise history, Masayuki Sanada is a playable character. It gets alot of things right but by the end of the game I was sorely disappointed with how two of the other 3 new characters–Sasuke and Chacha–ended up being used. More on that in a minute. The fourth new playable character in the series is Katsuyori Takeda, son of Shingen Takeda.

Spirit of Sanada chronicles the Warring States Era vets of the series know but mainly from the Sanada Clan’s perpsective. Specifically Masayuki and his second son Yukimora. There are secondary battles that take place that are optional but playable during the main story.

Simply having Masayuki as a playable character corrects long-maintained historical inaccuracies in the series about the rise and fall of the Takeda Clan, which the Sanada were aligned with until Katsuyori’s death. Spirit of Sanada correctly notes Yukimora and Nobuyuki never fought for Shingen Takeda because they were not yet of age. The game also correctly notes Masayuki becomes head of the clan when both of his older brothers are killed in battle.

Getting back to Chacha and Sasuke. Now, Chacha really did exist and she was the oldest daughter of Nagamasa Azai and Oichi (Nobunaga’s younger sister). While it’s likely she lived during the time, the problem is we know Hideyori Toyotomi was the undispiuted de-facto leader of the Toyotomi after Hideyoshi passed away. For this story to be believable, you would have to protend Hideyori doesn’t exist.

The obvious problem: Hideyori is at least mentioned by name in every. Previous. Samaurai Warriors. Game. Sasuke felt like a waste of a character slot as he doesn’t have much growth at all. Having him get killed off toward the end left me scratching my head a bit there like the implied death of Chacha. It also felt like a missed opportunity they purposely did not pursue pairing Chacha and Yukimora as more than Lady and Retainer despite how I felt it was being set up for that.

…Speaking of, they DID get Yukimora’s death right this time: According to the historical record, Yukimora came “within striking range” of Ieyasu Tokugawa before being forced back. Seriously wounded but still able to fight, he famously said “I will allow you to take my head” as Tokugawa’s foot soldiers converged on his position. Even though he fell in the final battle, Yukimora is still considered the greatest Warrior in Japan that ever lived.

As good a story as Yukimora and Nobuyuki clashing in Samurai Warriors 4 was, we know that from a historical standpoint Nobuyuki himself was actually in Edo at the time. When Japan split after Hideyoshi’s died, Nobuyuki sided with Ieyasu while Masayuki and Yukimora decided to side with the Toyotomi Clan. This decision split the Sanada Clan and ultimately ensured it survived through Nobuyuki, who would assume leadership of the clan after his father and brother died.

Moving on.

Although the game closely follows the Sanada clan, you can unlock everyone else as playable characters for use in Free Play. This includes both playable variations of Masayuki, Ieyasu and Nobuyki (Young and Old) and all 3 of Yukimora (Child, Youth and Adult). The (mostly optional and for Free Play) playable cast is everyone from Samurai Warriors 4 and Samurai Warriors 4-II + Sasuke, Chacha, Masayuki and Katsuyori. The method of unlocking them all is fairly easy and you can get started on that about halfway through the game. You simply have to run through exploration areas and collect items as well as take out baddies.

In closing, I’ll give the game an 8/10. I would say Spirit of Sanada is a good intro to the Samurai Warriors series, more so given Yukimora has not only been in every single Samurai Warriors game but the spinoff Warriors Orochi games. Comes with being the face of the franchise! I will say if it’s your first, then you should definitely play Samurai Warriors 4, Samurai Warriors 4-II and Samurai Warriors Chronicles 3 as well. If you want a bit more strategy, you can’t go wrong with Samurai Wariors 4 Empires!

…I’m sure I’m gonna need update this in a year or two but whatever. LOL.

The following are 10 RPGs released on the Nintendo 3DS or New Nintendo 3DS that I have personally played. For the purposes of this list, I omitted anything Fire Emblem AND Pokemon because they are MEGA Popular. This is more about showcasing other RPGs. Besides, all you need to do is Search Fire Emblem or Pokemon to see my reviews of every 3DS release of both series. LOL. Really though, I challenged myself to not include either series on this list to be fair to other games.

As noted by the title, eShop-Only RPGs are EXCLUDED. That will get its own list. Games available both Retail (physical) and Digital (eShop) will be on this list. It goes without saying Nintendo DS and Nintendo DS eShop titles will also be excluded. Once again: These are all games that I have played myself.If a game you think should have been here is left out, it’s very likely I haven’t played it myself.

Ok here we go.

10. RPG Maker FES

Now YOU make the next Classic RPG!

This game makes the list albiet barely due to the simple fact although the full game costs $40, you can download the RPG Maker FES Player free of charge from the eShop for FREE. What does this do? Oh, not much. just lets you download and play user-created games FOR FREE. If you just want to play games made from RPG Maker FES, you can download the Player and skip the full game.

To those looking to make RPGs, please keep in mind the making process is a MASSIVE time sink. The small handful of RPGs I’ve played so far have been a mixed bag in terms of quality but my biggest beef has been the poor grammar in many 5-star rated games. Games that took 30+ hours to complete tended to be of better quality. Games under 20 hours are usually presented as Demos to be tested by others for feedback while they work on it more.

9. Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse

It’s not every day the Shin Megami Tensei games get a direct sequel.

Yet, that’s what we got in SMTIV:A. Like the first game, there is DLC and multiple endings. The game closes out the lose ends from the first game and further explores the 3-way struggle between Humanity, Demons and Angels. Fair warning: Devout Christians may find the overt agnostic and athiestic themes of this game and its predecessor offensive.

8. Lord of Magna: Maiden Heaven

Short but sweet!

The game’s token storyline is tolerable given the game has 7 different endings depending on which of the Heronines you bond with the most by the game’s climax. It’s a strategy RPG and eqipped items carry over per playthrough as do unlocked skills. It’ll certainly keep you busy for a while to say the least. I bought it physical but it is also available digitally. The game is voiced as well.

7. Rune Factory 4

Harvest Moon with RPG Mechanics!

The Rune Factory series began on the Nintendo DS and it’s assumed Rune Factory 4 will be the last in the series due to the brand split. All the more reason to play this gem. It’s an amazing blend of Harvest Moon Mechanics and your standard hack and slash RPG. It is available both physical and digital but the

6. Etrian Mystery Dungeon

It’s Etryian Oddysey Meets Mystery Dungeon!

I found this game by accident two years ago on eShop and bought it. It’s a must-have if you’re a fan of either Mystery Dungeon or the Etrian Oddyssey series.

The EOU games are enhanced ports of their original Nintendo DS releases. The 3DS ports include an original story with VAs as well as DLC. You get the choice of playing Story Mode or Classic Mode, which is the original game with the 3DS enhancements. A nice bonus: When you clear one mode, you can carry over character process to the other one.

I bought both games digitally but you can find physical copies of both. Each game has its charm. Both have your standard silent protagonist but it’s not too overbearing if that’s not your thing.

4. Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth

Persona 3 and Persona 4 meets Etryian Oddyssey!

I thought this game wasn’t going to do well in the U.S. but it the fanservice actually lured folks who played Persona 3 and Persona 4 on the PS2, PS3 and Vita to buy a 3DS JUST FOR THIS GAME. I have had it for a few years and haven’t beaten it yet but I would be remiss to not give this game props. It’s available both physical and digital.

3. Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor OVERCLOCKED

…Yes, I’m aware this game and its sequel are both Nintendo DS Ports.

That’s exactly why I reccommend this one. Enough to put it om the Top 3. I bought it on sale Digital for $20 3 years ago but you can still find physical copies of the game. A manga series based on the game was recently released just so you know. I actually have the first 4 volumes. The 3DS version is fully voiced, has a New Game +, A Compendium (absent from the DS Version) and has an additional 8th Day Chapter with certain endings. Fair warning: Devout Christians may find the overt agnostic and athiestic themes of this game and its sequel offensive.

2. Stella Glow

…Honestly, I wanted to give them #1 but I felt highlighting the game that got that spot was more important. I just revewed this game the other day so I won’t say any more than it’s a solid Strategy RPG.

1. Tales of the Abyss

…Surprised?

As of right now it is (still) the only “Tales of” game to get released on the 3DS. Sure, it’s a port but it IS the full game. Unlike the Vita release of Tales of Hearts R, nothing was added to the 3DS version aside from slight control scheme tweaking to fit the console. Fans like to complain about the audio quality in the 3DS version but if you use headphones or even better, a portable speaker that problem is solved. That and the game not getting a digital release are literally the only complaints folks have about TotA 3DS.

Abyss, like the Xbox 360’s Vesperia is one of the Black Sheep of the series: Really good but under appreciated. Atlus may have put both Square Enix and Namco to shame in regards to 3DS RPG releases but it’s all the more reason for both companies to show the 3DS some love. A New 3DS port of Vesperia could work.

0. Honorable Mentions

…Let’s get the obvious out the way, shall we?

Pokemon X and Pokemon Y: The first 3DS entrants for the main Pokemon series and half of the 6th Gen. Mega Evolution was introduced and as a bonus, we got Pokemon Bank (WOOT!).

Fire Emblem Awakening: At the time Awakening was in development Intelligent Systems got an ultimatum from Nintendo: If Awakening bombed, the Fire Emblem series was done. Not just in the U.S. but in Japan as well. As well all know, Awakening is the highest-grossing game in the series EVER. The game-changing pair up mechanics (nerfed in Fates) added an additional layer of strategy. The various references to past games in the series for Fire Emblem fans was like icing on the cake. Nevermind being able to recruit guest units for all of the past Fire Emblem games! Robin and Lucina are both playable characters in Super Smash Bros.

Pokemon OmegaRuby and Pokemon AlphaSapphire: The Ruby and Sapphire remakes served as a kind of bridge between the 6th and 7th gen in a few ways. More Mega Evolutions as well as Kyogre and Groudon’s Primal Reversions are introduced.

Fire Emblem Fates: Birthright, Fire Emblem Fates:Conquest and Fire Emblem Fates:Revelations: As a sort of “Reward” to Fire Emblem fans, Intelligent Systems released not one game but 3 this time. Conquest follows the story from the side of Nohr, Birthright follows the story from the side of Hoshido and Revelations focuses on the story of the Lost Kingdom of Valla. Corrin, the main Lord of Fates is a DLC Character in Super Smash Bros.

Pokemon Sun and Pokemon Moon: The lastest entrant in the Pokemon series introduces Z-Power, which allows Pokemon to launch a Super Move once during battles. Sun and Moon are highly acclaimed for the Evil Team, Team Skull. Why? Because being bad has never been as cool as they make it look and feel. They’re not about world conquest or stealing Pokemon. They’re about being HARD. As was announced a few months ago, Sun and Moon are getting enhanced remakes in UltraSun and UltraMoon later this year.

Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia: The simple fact that this game was released worldwide renews hope we may see Fire Emblem: Binding Blade starring Roy (the game released before GBA Fire Emblem but is actually its sequel) and possibly Geneology of the Holy War (starring Sigurd and Seliph). Shadows of Valentia is a remake of the series’ black sheep Fire Emblem Gaiden. It takes place between the events of the first two Fire Emblem games was the first Fire Emblem game to have both a traversable map (brought back in Sacred Stones and Awakening) and two Protagonists (brought back in Sacred Stones and Radiant Dawn). The game was rebuilt using Gaiden as a base but also has the honor of being the first Fire Emblem game to be fully voiced. If you consider yourself a fan of the Fire Emblem series, you owe it to yourself to buy this piece of history.

I’ll be honest: The REAL reason I excluded the above 11 games is so folks can’t say “Oh, he just had to give Pokemon/Fire Emblem the top spots like there aren’t other RPGs on the 3DS.” Pfft. Wait ’till you see my list of Top 10 RPGs that are eShop exclusive. That isn’t to say the above 11 games are unworthy of making the list. There’s also the fact a trifecta of RPGs is getting released next March: Radiant Historia, Etrian Odyssey 5 and Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey Redux. Let’s not also forget Fire Emblem Warriors, which is also being released on the Nintendo Switch.

This year, the last few years and obviously next year should be more than enoughto shut up people who like to say “There are no decient RPGs on the 3DS other than Pokemon and Fire Emblem”. The 3DS has been doing far better than the Vita in comparison. Don’t get me wrong, I have almost all the RPGs released on the Vita worth playing–The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel 1 and 2 are most-owns on that note–but they simply don’t hold a candle to what the 3DS offers.

You also have those who have been saying since the Switch was unveiled last year that the 3DS is being phased out. That simply isn’t true. The release of Pokemon UltraSun and Pokemon UltraMoon in a few months say hi. Yes, Nintendo is phasing out older 3DS and 2DS models but one shouldn’t take that to mean the 3DS is done. As Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime firmly stated at E3 last year, the 3DS is far from done.

…Look forward to my list for eShop-exclusive games when it’s posted^_^